Christian Gross claimed that reports of a player revolt within the Schalke dressing room "caused great unrest" after the former Tottenham boss was sacked on Sunday.
Gross was relieved of his duties at Veltins-Arena, along with three members of his backroom staff, with the club now on the lookout for their fifth head coach of the 2020-21 campaign.
It has been reported that several members of the first-team squad had started to rebel against the Swiss coach's methods, which he believes played a key role in his dismissal.
What was said?
Gross, who took in a spell at Spurs in 1997-98, told Blick of his Schalke departure: "This report of the revolt, of the uprising or whatever, naturally caused great unrest. I talked to [Schalke sporting director] Jochen Schneider on Saturday morning - he told me explicitly that there was no player with him.
"And I also addressed the players directly and said that they should come to me directly if they have problems.
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"It can be the case that you don't like my face, that you don't like me. But then you have to say it openly, no problem."
Why was Gross sacked?
Gross was appointed as Schalke's new manager at the end of December, with the team sitting bottom of the Bundesliga and still looking for their first victory.
The 66-year-old did manage to break that winless streak with a 4-0 win against Hoffenheim, but Schalke lost eight of their 11 games across all competitions during his brief reign, including a 5-1 reversal against Stuttgart on Saturday.
Despite that sequence of results Gross still believes he could have turned the club's fortunes around if he had been given more time.
"I am very disappointed. Especially since as a coach I still have the feeling that the team is developing," he added
"We were on the right track and are making progress and I am still convinced that Schalke can still avoid relegation."
Who else has been sacked by Schalke this season?
Ex-Huddersfield Town coach David Wagner, who took the top job at Schalke back in May 2019, became the club's first managerial casualty of the current season in September.
Manuel Baum was drafted in as his replacement, but he was given his marching orders on December 18 as the team began to fall away at the foot of the Bundesliga standings.
Huub Stevens was then appointed on an interim basis and lasted a grand total of four days in the role before Gross arrived during the winter break.
What's next?
Schalke only have 11 games left to stave off relegation to the Bundesliga.2 and currently sit nine points adrift of safety in 20th.
The Gelsenkirchen-based club are due back in action at home to Mainz on Saturday, by which time they could well have their new manager in place.
Schalke will take in a trip to Wolfsburg eight days later before their focus shifts to a meeting with Borussia Monchengladbach on March 20.
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